The Patriots’ behind-the-scenes
The New England Patriots released the first episode of their Forged in Foxborough documentary series on Friday afternoon. Over the course of 73 minutes it gives insight into the team’s first offseason under head coach Mike Vrabel so far, including his hiring as head coach, free agency, and the draft.
Insight into the latter was probably the most interesting part of the whole episode, but it is worth watching in full nonetheless. With that said, here are six takeaways.
Mike Vrabel’s simple ground rules
The show opened with the Patriots’ head coach addressing his team for the first time, and setting the stage for what the program is going to look like under his leadership. The four big pillars upon which it is going to be built are, he explained, would be respect, honesty, trust and accountability.
“When we talk about, when I got here and what my goal was, it was to build a program that you guys and the coaches and the staff wanted to be a part of, that they wanted to protect and that they are proud of it,” Vrabel told the team. “I’m proud of the way we prepare, I’m proud of the way we practice, and I’m proud of my teammates for the effort with which they play.”
Page, turned
The Patriots’ 2024 season was a major disappointment, resulting in the firing of Jerod Mayo and Vrabel getting hired as head coach. Vrabel, however, is wasting no thought on the issues that plagued the team last year.
“Somebody asked me, ‘Are you worried about what went wrong last year?’ Why the f–k would I care about what happened last year?” he said during his speech to the team. “I’m worried about what’s going to right today and tomorrow and the next day. We’re not worried about what went wrong. We’re focused on what’s going to go right.”
Toughness above all else
Among those interviewed for the show was national scout Matt Evans, and he mentioned toughness as the one trait Mike Vrabel wants out of his players.
“I would say toughness is the biggest thing, where it’s a non-negotiable,” Evans explained. “It’s hard to bring players to the table with Vrabes that you aren’t convinced are real tough guys.”
One of those, apparently, is offensive lineman Jared Wilson. A third-round pick by the Patriots, Wilson was scouted by Evans during the pre-draft process.
It’s a three-man show
What the look inside the Patriots’ draft room shows more than anything is who is running the show: it’s Mike Vrabel as well as EVP of player personnel Eliot Wolf and VP of player personnel Ryan Cowden. While others are obviously also involved — including director of player personnel Matt Groh, senior executive Alonzo Highsmith and since-departed college scouting director Camren Williams — those three are the main men.
Will Campbell was LT1 the moment he entered the building
The Patriots’ video production team successfully blurred out the most important background information in the draft room, but we can still gather some insight from what is available. Namely: the Patriots viewed Will Campbell as their starting left tackle the moment he was drafted.
A brief glimpse at a depth chart that flashed on screen at one point shows this: with rookie cards in yellow, we can see Campbell as LT1 on Day 2 of the draft.
As the first episode of ‘Forged in Foxborough’ shows, there was never a question about Will Campbell’s position along the Patriots offensive line: he became their starting left tackle the moment he entered the building. pic.twitter.com/NcR959qh8Y
— Bernd Buchmasser (@BerndBuchmasser) May 17, 2025
Trade insight
The Patriots were quite active on the trade market during the draft, and they had other offers on the table as well.
At No. 38, which was eventually invested in running back TreVeyon Henderson, the Chicago Bears expressed interest in moving up. Standing at No. 39, they wanted to move up one spot and add a seventh-rounder to the mix. Another offer came from the Las Vegas Raiders, who proposed sending No. 58, No. 79 and a 2026 third-rounder to New England.
Later, the Patriots received offers from the Carolina Panthers and Tennessee Titans for the 77th overall selection. The Panthers trade went through, with New England picking up third- and fifth-round selections (No. 85 and No. 146) in the process. The Titans, meanwhile, had proposed No. 82 plus a sixth-rounder that was either No. 177 or No. 188.
Additionally, the Patriots’ trade down with Kansas City from 85 to 95 did not involve the Chiefs’ original 2026 fourth-rounder. Instead, New England acquired a pick that originally belonged to the Bears but changed hands during the trade that sent ex-Patriot Joe Thuney from Kansas City to Chicago.